Richard Gasquet has named two top ATP stars who were “not nice” as he also shed light on what Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer are like behind the scenes.
The 38-year-old will hang up his racket after playing the final tournament of his illustrious career at this year’s French Open.
The Frenchman has won 16 ATP singles titles, while he reached a career-high ranking of world No 7 in 2007.
Gasquet, who turned pro in 2002, played throughout the golden generation of tennis dominated by the legendary Big Three.
He holds a 2-19 record against Federer and a 1-13 record against Djokovic, while he was unable to beat Nadal in 18 encounters on the main tour.
During an episode of the Pause podcast, Gasquet discussed his relationship with top players on the ATP Tour during his career.
In response to the host asking “is there a guy who wasn’t nice?”, Gasquet named both Tomas Berdych and Robin Soderling.
“Guys a little less strong [than Federer, Djokovic and Nadal] like Tomas Berdych, Robin Soderling, who were still ranked fifth and sixth in the world,” said Gasquet (translated from French).
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“But the best, the ones who really interest people, Federer, Nadal and Djokovic, are polite, respectful, pleasant guys.”
Soderling and Berdych were both ranked as high as fourth in the world and were runners-up at the French Open and Wimbledon respectively in 2010.
Gasquet amassed a 3-2 record against Soderling and a 8-9 record against Berdych.
In a recent interview with Arnaud Clement for Eurosport France, Gasquet highlighted Nadal on a clay court as the toughest opponent he has ever faced.
“It’s so hard to compare. It’s so irrational. From time to time, we’re in a world where it’s so hard to say,”
“The other one (Nadal), he won Roland Garros 14 times, you can’t think anymore. The other one (Djokovic), he won 24 Grand Slams. Federer took the ball on the half-volley all day long, so I can’t think anymore.
“Afterwards, yes, the ultimate level, Nadal on clay when it was very hot. You see that beautiful one bounced 10 meters, it was crazy. It was a ball of incredible power.
“I would say him, I would really say Nadal on clay when it’s hot. Besides, he lost two or three times maybe.”
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